In any industry, there’s a certain amount of down time involved. Trading is no exception. And, with penny stocks YOU MUST HAVE PATIENCE TO WAIT FOR THE ABSOLUTE BEST SET UPS TO TRADE…that’s been the key to success for my top Millionaire Trading Challenge students and myself and how we stay productive .
As exhilarating and quickly as things can move during market hours, there are bound to be times where you find yourself waiting. Waiting for a deal to go through, waiting to see what happens with your stock…basically, waiting for what’s going to happen to happen.
How can you make the most use of these down times and not fall into stagnancy?
You’ve heard the phrase “a watched pot never boils.” Instead of constantly refreshing your screen or obsessing about things you can’t change, here are some tips for how to stay productive during these times. Not only will they keep you sane, but they will keep you moving in a positive direction.
1. Don’t just wait around for something to happen. Do you know the difference between waiting for the next step…and just sitting around and waiting for something to happen? Because there is indeed a difference. The former requires patience; the latter is laziness.
To find success in your career, you have to be proactive in chasing down opportunities. Be honest with yourself about your current status. Have you taken action and are waiting to see the result? Or, are you secretly hoping things just come to you?
2. Wake up early. Rising with the birds is one of the best ways to boost your overall productivity and is a common habit of longtime millionaires. It’s amazing how much you can accomplish in as little as a few hours during the quiet, undisturbed morning time.
When you wake up early, you have time to take care of errands, sift through emails and take care of tasks that might otherwise impede your work day. This means that you’ll free yourself up to be productive.
Additionally, it gives you time to focus and make a game plan for the day. By taking the time to read the financial papers and mull over your current projects, you might be surprised by the clarity that will come to your day.
3. Increase your prowess. One of the best ways to stay productive as a trader is to increase your knowledge about the market. By carefully studying how the market works and by learning more about it, you will position yourself so that you can make better investments. Even if you’re not acting on your knowledge right away, the long-term benefits are incredible.
So, whether it’s how to trade penny stocks, studying successful plays by your peers or researching stock offerings, taking the time to increase your prowess and knowledge of the market is going to help you become and stay productive.
4. Meet with your mentor. When you’re feeling in limbo as a trader, it’s always a good idea to have a chat with your mentor.
Whether you’re waiting for something to happen, trying to decide which stock to trade or pondering a new method of investment, your mentor will always provide a new sense of perspective. A mentor can give ideas on how to move forward or can offer suggestions for how you can proceed. This can keep you from stagnating and keep you feeling productive. By sharing their own experiences during similar times, you might find a new sense of direction after a meeting with your mentor.
4. Seek out accountability. For a lot of my Millionaire Challenge students, accountability is a powerful motivator. That’s part of why they signed up for the Millionaire Challenge in the first place. To pursue advancing as a trader on your own can be scary or at least daunting and it can be easy to give up at the first sign of resistance.
However, when you have a group and a teacher to keep you accountable, you have built-in inspiration and a friendly competitive spirit to keep you motivated. Accountability can be a very good thing and it can help you stay productive. Think of it like working out in the gym. If you are working out on your own, chances are you’re not going to do nearly as many reps as you would if you were in a group or working with a personal trainer.
5. Take time to revisit your goals. Going back to your goals can be a great way to make yourself stay productive during down times.
It can be easy to lose sight of why you’re trading in the daily grind. However, in those in-between moments when you are waiting for your next move, revisiting your goals and evaluating how you’re doing in terms of reaching them can prove a powerful exercise.
Take a long hard look at your goals and what you’re doing to attain them. What could you be doing differently? Moreover, what has been working and what hasn’t been? Good things can come from cutting out the things that aren’t taking you closer to your goals.
6. Plot potential next moves. Even when you’re not directly involved in a game-changing deal, you can be involved in plotting your next moves. Like a game of chess, try to work a few steps ahead. This way, you’ll never be caught off-guard and won’t have to react in a defensive or harried way. By really considering future plays or how you can get ahead, you’ll allow yourself to be poised and ready when the moment comes.
7. Relax. Yes, you heard me. As a trader, you’ll have plenty of moments where you’ll have to think on your feet and act quickly. So, when you do find yourself with a little down or waiting time, try to relax as much as you can. Consider it your recovery time. Enjoy, but don’t get too used to it! There’s plenty of work to do in the future.
There are quiet times in any type of work that you chose. But that doesn’t mean that time has to be wasted. By following the tips detailed in this post, you can make the most of the quiet times and use them to be better when the busy season returns, as is always inevitable. Overall, this ensures that you are remaining productive and keeping your career moving forward in a positive direction and remember that 90%+ of traders lose money and it’s due to lack of preparation…so use the slow times to fix that issue!
What’s your favorite tip for staying productive during slow or down times? You tell me in the comments section below!
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